In dry wall construction, gypsum board panels are secured to the face of studs or framing members which may be wood or metal or other material. Before the wall boards are secured in place, internal wiring to various outlets, switch plates and the like is installed. Much of the wiring may run parallel to the frame members.
The wall boards are then secured to the stud frame, usually by fasteners installed with power driven tools. Since the internal stud is concealed when the wall board is in place, it is easy for the fastener to miss the stud. The fastener is then driven into the open interior of the wall. The fastener, especially when driven by a power tool, may pierce anything in its path such as wiring. If the fastener engages the wiring it may damage the insulation or covering and may well cause a short. The damage may go unnoticed. If noticed, expensive repairs are required which may require opening the wall.
Because of this problem the National Electric Code now specifies that wiring be positioned a defined safe distance (11/4 inches) from the nearest edge of the framing member. If such spacing cannot be maintained the wiring has to be protected by a 1/16 inch steel plate or sleeve. The code requirement is found in Article 300, Section 300-4(d) N.E.C.
A typical 2.times.4 stud used in dry wall construction has dimensions somewhat less than the name would imply. A typical 2.times.4 is perhaps 31/2 inches from edge to edge. If the wiring is to be positioned 11/4 inches from the nearest edge, this leaves only a 1 inch envelope in the center of the stud or wall within which to support the wiring. This then requires the wiring to be firmly supported and disciplined to avoid encroachment into the restricted space.
A present practice is to staple wiring such as ROMEX to the major flat side of a wood stud. This becomes a problem, particularly if more than one wiring run is required since wiring, if stapled at all, should not be stapled on top of each other, particularly with a power operated tool.
Accordingly, a clip which may be mounted on the stud to support and discipline the wiring to avoid encroachment into the restricted space and comply with the code is desirable.
Since a number of clips may be required for the necessary discipline of the wiring it is also important that such clips be low cost and easy to install.
The following U.S. patents were noted in a preliminary patentability search:
______________________________________ 188,317 3,606,217 237,976 3,785,598 424,016 4,623,102 736,867 4,790,060 3,036,801 4,799,641 3,216,025 4,881,705 3,233,851 4,913,386 ______________________________________
While some relate to stud brackets for securing piping, such as U.S. Pat. No. 3,216,025 to roll, none seem related to the problem nor solution of the present invention.